Whenever you see reams of paper stacked along the side of a school and office supply store, or when you see a furniture shop filled with wooden products, what’s the first thing that pops into your mind? Is it the idea of using those pieces of paper for writing your next literary piece, or perhaps you’re thinking about how comfortable it would be if you bought that piece of furniture?
Did the thought of cutting down trees to create those products even cross your mind? Well, it’s time that it should; deforestation is a major problem in our world, and pretty soon we might not experience the joy of looking at one of nature’s wonders. Reports surrounding deforestation facts state that rain forests might disappear from this planet in about 100 years.
What You Need to Know About the Anomaly Known as Deforestation
There was a time when Earth was filled with the color green, and it’s an amazing sight if you look at it from the pictures acquired from a space station. However, those times might never return if we don’t do something soon. If you take a look at the current pictures of our planet acquired from a space station, you’ll see large patches of brown where there was once vast areas of green. Know that there are millions of hectares of forests cleared for multiple purposes. Studies show that by the year 2030, planet Earth might only have about 10% of the world’s forest left. If we don’t stop our deforesting actions, then all of it might be gone in about 100 years.
The Importance of Forests
Ever since we were little, we’re told by our parents and educators that rainforests are an important part of life in our planet. However, have you ever stopped and thought about why it’s important in the first place? Forests are home to many species of plant and animal life. Furthermore, trees help absorb the poisonous gas known as carbon dioxide while releasing much-needed oxygen into the atmosphere for humans to breathe. Rainforests are also home to indigenous people.
What Happens if We Don’t Stop Deforestation
Aside from the fact that there might no longer be forests in about 100 years, there is also a huge possibility of extinction for more than half of the Earth’s plant and animal species.
Remember, it took millions of years for Earth to naturally grow rainforests, but humans learned how to destroy more than half of it in a very short span of time. It’s our job as the smartest beings on this planet to give back to Mother Nature, or else we might not have a beautiful planet to call home in a hundred years.
